The present invention relates to a door handle assembly and more specifically to an improved door handle assembly having mounting studs capable of being selectively adjusted and securely held at one of the predetermined fixed positions, which enable positioning of mounting studs of the door handle assembly to be installed, in direct alignment with standard positions of holes that are found in different doors.
Door handle assemblies are commonly known in the art and are substantially used for installation on different types of doors. The door handle assemblies generally comprise a rotatable handle having a locking mechanism, a handle mount and a faceplate. Door handle assemblies may be used for installation on either newly manufactured doors or currently installed doors which require replacement of an existing door handle assembly. The door handle assemblies are generally installed on doors by aligning the holes in the door handle assembly with the holes in the door and securing the fasteners through aligned holes.
The spacing between the holes in the door varies for different types of door handles, but generally the spacing is fixed at one of three standard sizes, namely 1.5″, 1.75″ or 3.0″, located symmetrically about a central spindle aperture. This variation in standard spacing limits the functional adaptability of the door handle assembly for differently prepared types of doors and requires an inventory of door handle assemblies having different size of spacing between the holes. Alternatively, in case of mismatch of spacing between the holes of a door handle assembly to be installed and the spacing between the holes available in the door, new holes must be drilled through the door.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,387, hereby incorporated by reference, discloses a universal latch wherein two mounting studs are provided, which are adjustable relative to the spindle position. These adjustable mounting studs enable installation of the latch assembly in alignment with the existing holes of the door, thereby enhancing the functional adaptability of the door latches and obviating the need for drilling new holes in the door. The mounting studs have square flats at one end, which are positioned in the recess between the track plate and the planar wall of the faceplate of the knob housing subassembly. The shanks of the mounting studs, which extend outwardly through the elongated slots of the track plate, are internally threaded thus permitting fasteners to be fixed in alignment with the holes of the door, for joining knob housing subassembly on one side of the door to the latch subassembly on the other side of the door.
However, the latch assembly described in the above cited US patent has the limitation that the mounting studs must be accurately adjusted in the slotted regions of the track plate so as to align the spacing between the mounting studs with the spacing between the holes in the door, which in turn depends upon the type of door used.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved adjustable novel door handle assembly.